I’m two thirds of the way through my preaching sabbatical, and it’s hard to believe how quickly the first eight weeks passed. I’m thankful for another month, but also have a growing eagerness to jump back into preaching. A number of you have asked me how things are going, and I thought I’d share a few things I’ve learned: 

• I’m reminded there is no other place I’d rather worship than Jordan Valley Church. While we’ve only been gone a few Sundays during the sabbatical, I’ve realized the place I most want to be worshiping is with you – whether I’m preaching or not. I love you all; I love worshiping with you all and seeing your faces and talking with you afterwards. There is no other church I’d rather be at. 

• Knowing another Sunday is always coming was more of a burden than I’d realized; these past eight weeks, that weight has been lifted.. I didn’t know before how much sermon writing dominated my schedule and mind. I always knew what day it was based on what work I did on my sermon. I always looked forward to Wednsdays because that was the one workday I didn’t do sermon prep. Sunday mornings I woke up knowing I needed to review the sermon one more time. It has been freeing to be released from the pressure of the next sermon.

• I’ve been reminded of the centrality of preaching and a felt renewed desire to take it seriously. Two weeks ago I attended a short preaching conference, and during the talks I was reminded how much God works through pastors preaching his word. I felt the responsibility to dig into my Bible and wrestle with the text I’ll be preaching. The longer you’ve preached, the easier it is to lose some of that passion. It’s easy to fall back on old ways of saying things instead of saying them in a way that moves your heart today. I’m encouraged because I’m becoming more eager to spend that time studying God’s word and to share it with you.

• I’m encouraged because I’ve felt my preaching tanks slowly filling up. In an earlier newsletter I mentioned how they’d felt closer and closer to empty. I’m thankful because each week I see little ways in which those tanks feel more full. 

• I had two primary writing goals during this time: (1) To finish an academic article on the relationship between special and general revelation. (2) To begin a book on training and leading elders and deacons. I quickly discovered that my writing goals were a bit too optimistic. I let go of some of the pressure I put on myself to get everything done; I wanted to make sure I got some mental and spiritual rest. But I’m happy to say that I’ve finished an early draft of the article. It’s around 10,000 words, and I plan to submit it before my sabbatical is over. I’ve started the book and written around 13,000 words; my goal is 35,000-40,000 words (~125-150 pages). I won’t get this all done during my sabbatical, but I’d like to get to at least 25,000 words. While the process hasn’t always been easy, I’ve really enjoyed the time to learn and dive into topics that interest me. It’s been intellectually refreshing and helped me clarify my own thinking. 

Thank you all for your continued support during this preaching sabbatical. If you remember to pray for me, pray for God to continue to fill my tanks and grow my heart to love him more. I’m praying for all of you and expect to return to the pulpit on December 11th with a renewed vigor and passion to serve you God’s Word. It may not be my best sermon–I’m sure I’ll be a bit rusty–but I’ll give it with joy. 

In Christ,
Pastor Jon